Peruvian court: No more prison for Lori Berenson

[The Straight Story]

Peruvian court: No more prison for Lori Berenson

LIMA, Peru – A Peruvian appeals court rejected a prosecutor's attempt to revoke the parole of U.S. activist Lori Berenson, who was released in May after serving 15 years for aiding leftist rebels.

Berenson and her attorney told The Associated Press on Monday that the ruling is final and cannot be appealed by prosecutors, ending eight months of excruciating legal purgatory.

"I'm pleased with the decision and grateful for it," Berenson said by telephone, adding that she was "greatly relieved."

"The only thing that she can do now, with tranquility, is to plan her life," said Anibal Apari, her attorney and the father of Berenson's 20-month-old son, Salvador.

Under her parole, the 41-year-old New Yorker cannot leave Peru until her 20-year sentence ends in 2015 — unless President Alan Garcia decides to commute it. He has said he would consider doing so only once the legal case ran its course.

http://tinyurl.com/4bjheey

[elleng]

1. Posted earlier:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=439x264541

[Peace Patriot]

2. i wonder if this Peruvian decision was influenced by the fact that the new presidents of Brazil,

Uruguay and Nicaragua are all former leftist guerillas? In addition, the previous president of Brazil was jailed by the fascist junta in that country, the president of Venezuela engaged in armed resistance, as a young paratrooper rebelling against government atrocities, the president of Paraguay and his family were persecuted by the fascist rulers, the president of Bolivia, when he was young, was kidnapped and beaten by police for union organizing and the president of El Salvador, while too young to have been a guerrilla, is head of the party that was the guerrilla group during El Salvador's brutal fascist period. One more, the young president of Ecuador recently earned his stripes by being assaulted, beaten and nearly killed by a rightwing coup group within the police and military.

Time to understand why people would take up arms against brutal fascist regimes--and to forgive and move on, but never forget why they felt they had to do so?

Peru's government is an anomaly in this company of anti-fascists who have been elected in all these countries, with so many leaders having actively resisted brutal tyrannical government, even to taking up arms or aiding those who did, and/or having suffered from fascist regimes. Peru's borders are mostly leftist government borders (Bolivia, Ecuador, Brazil). Yet Peru is a U.S. client state, implementing U.S. "free trade for the rich" and playing the U.S. "war on drugs" dirty game. Its president, Alan Garcia, last I noticed, had a 25% approval rating--which all of the leftists listed above are wildly popular, by comparison. His numbers might have improved a bit, recently, as he has stepped back--and been pushed back--from some of his most unpopular policies. Commuting Lori Berenson's sentence may be one among efforts to earn some points with his leftist neighbors and with the left in Peru. He's termed out, though. So maybe he just wants a nice cushy appointment to some regional commission--and needs the support of leftist countries. Could also possibly be angling for something from the U.S. (I think the official State Dept. position was clemency for Berenson.) Or, could be the U.S., through Garcia, currying favor with leftist leaders (or some of them) in the region.

Anyway, I thought I'd just point out that any number of Latin America's current presidents would be in jail in Peru, having probably done even more than Berenson in the anti-fascist struggle. How can Garcia look them in the eye, with Berenson still in jail, and such irregularities in her original trial, and her "crime" having been only "aiding" a guerrilla group (which she admitted and apologized for, and has already spent 15 years in jail for)?

[roody]

3. Great news!